Effects of Stress on Physical Health

• Stress contributes to many psychosomatic disorders such as ulcers, migraine, eczema, asthma, hypertension, colitis, and diabetes.
• Everyday hassles and examination stress can cause headaches, stomach upsets, skin eruptions, fever, and low back pain.
• Chronic, continuous stress gradually leads to serious problems like cardiac issues, high blood pressure, and even paralysis.
• Mind and body are linked, so negative mental states can disrupt body chemistry and weaken the immune system.
• High stress levels are associated with raised blood pressure and increased blood sugar, raising the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Emotional Effects

• Stress leads to mood swings, irritability, anxiety, and depression.
• Behaviour becomes erratic and can damage relationships with family and friends.
• A vicious cycle may form: stress → low confidence → more emotional problems.

Physiological Effects

• Stress triggers the release of hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol.
• This causes increased heart rate, higher blood pressure, faster breathing, and slowed digestion.
• Short-term changes help in emergencies, but long-term activation damages the body.

Cognitive Effects

• Prolonged stress causes mental overload and poor concentration.
• Short-term memory and decision-making ability decline.
• Faulty decisions at home, school, or work lead to conflicts and failures.

Behavioural Effects

• People may eat poorly and rely more on stimulants like caffeine.
• There is often increased use of cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs such as tranquilisers.
• Sleep becomes disturbed, absenteeism increases, and work or academic performance falls.

• Examination anxiety is tension or uneasiness before, during, or after exams.
• Mild anxiety is normal and can motivate focused study and better performance.
• Very high exam stress (test anxiety) makes students see exams as threatening and harms performance.
• Highly test-anxious students feel tense, nervous, and full of negative self-focused thoughts.
• Their attention turns inward, leading to poor concentration, attentional blocks, and underperformance.
• Effective coping includes regular study, revision planning, discussing doubts, making condensed notes, spacing revision, and staying calm on exam day.

• Many people fall sick during stressful periods (e.g., exams) with symptoms like stomach upset, aches, nausea, diarrhoea, and fever.
• Those unhappy or under constant stress fall ill more often than people who are generally happy.
• Prolonged stress causes physical exhaustion (fatigue, weakness, low energy).
• It also causes mental exhaustion (irritability, anxiety, helplessness, hopelessness).
• This state of combined physical, emotional, and psychological exhaustion is called burnout.
• Stress is estimated to play a major role in 50–70% of physical illnesses and around 60% of medical visits.

Selye described a three-stage response pattern of the body to prolonged stress.

Alarm Reaction

• Stressor is detected; the adrenal–pituitary–cortex system is activated.
• Stress hormones are released; the body prepares for fight-or-flight.

Resistance Stage

• If stress continues, the body attempts to cope and resist.
• The parasympathetic system tries to conserve resources while high arousal continues.

Exhaustion Stage

• In the long term, unrelieved stress drains the body's resources.
• Resistance falls, and vulnerability to stress-related diseases like hypertension increases.

Criticism

• GAS gives limited importance to psychological factors such as appraisal and personality.

• The immune system protects the body against antigens like viruses and bacteria.
• White blood cells (leucocytes) and antibodies identify and destroy these foreign bodies.
• T cells kill invaders; T-helper cells regulate immune activity and are targeted by HIV.
• B cells produce antibodies; natural killer cells fight viruses and tumours.
• Chronic stress reduces the effectiveness of natural killer cells and weakens immunity.
• Lower immune function is seen in highly stressed students, bereaved individuals, and severely depressed people.
• Social support improves immune functioning, especially in those whose immunity is already weakened.

• Stress is often accompanied by negative emotions such as depression, hostility, anger, and aggression.
• Long-term stress increases the likelihood of panic attacks, obsessive behaviour, phobias, and mood swings.
• Intense worries can produce frightening physical sensations that may be mistaken for heart attacks.
• Negative moods and hopelessness are linked with worse health outcomes, more injuries, and a higher risk of death.
• How people interpret life events and the meaning they attach to them strongly influences their health.

• Lifestyle is the overall pattern of decisions and behaviours that affect health and quality of life.
• Under stress, people often develop unhealthy habits: poor diet, less sleep, smoking, alcohol abuse, and other risky behaviours.
• These behaviours feel pleasant or relieving in the short term, but cause serious damage in the long run.
• Health-promoting behaviours include a balanced low-fat diet, regular exercise, continued activity, and positive thinking.
• Family and social support are important for maintaining good health.
• Modern fast-paced lifestyles with excess eating, drinking, and neglect of health principles increase stress and illness risk.

• Physical Health: Stress can cause or worsen many health problems, such as ulcers, asthma, hypertension, diabetes, and weakened immunity.
• Psychological Impact: Stress affects emotions (e.g., mood swings, anxiety), thinking (e.g., poor concentration), and behaviour (e.g., sleep issues, substance use).
• Examination Stress: High exam stress can reduce performance by causing anxiety, negative thoughts, and poor focus.
• Burnout: Prolonged stress leads to physical and mental exhaustion, lowering energy, mood, and health—called burnout.
• Lifestyle & Immunity: Chronic stress weakens immunity and leads to unhealthy habits; good diet, exercise, and social support improve health.